Revenge: A Dish Best Served Cold
by Trekky18
Summary: T'Mira and George have been taken. Six months and no leads leave Kirk and Bones with few options left. The situation worsens when Kirk and Chekov are captured not once but twice. Sequel to I'm Sorry. Slight Checkov/OC.


_At the request of my many reviewers and many, many cans of Diet Coke, this sequel was born. And it will be Epicness (curse you __**CaffeineKid**__ and __**FuzzyDeath**__ for my new obsession with the word epic)!!!! By the way, if you haven't read "__**When Fates Collide"**__ yet, you totally should. It's pure EPICNESS!!!! Anyway, hope you guys like the sequel to I'm Sorry._

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_-Trekky17  
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"T'Mira!"

"Over here, mother."Aeryn stepped down into the grassy area where T'Mira had set up a small garden. She had a green watering can tucked to her side while she bent over to water the plants.

"Come on inside. Tara's on the line. I'm sure she'll want to see George."

"Ok. Let's go, George. Mommy's calling." A pair of bright blue eyes looked up from the shovel he had just drove into the soft soil. His hands were covered in dirt and a smile was plastered all over his face. T'Mira reached out for the toddler and brought him to his feet. The child stumbled before gaining his footing and soon was matching T'Mira's hurried pace. Aeryn watched the two with amusement.

She sighed, remembering her childhood back in Colorado. Stephan and her would always take Tara for walks and show her the wildlife. Of course, Tara always cared about the plants. It appeared that little George had picked up the curiosity just as T'Mira had.

"Wait up, you two." Aeryn stepped into the house and headed to the living room. T'Mira was already settled on the couch with George settled in beside her. George's attention was completely held by the woman on the screen.

_Hope you're keeping busy, Aeryn._

"George can be a bit of a handful, but T'Mira keeps him occupied enough."

_Are you sure he isn't a problem? I can always come back._

"Now we both know that isn't going to happen. Both you and Jim are a bit preoccupied. Besides, a spaceship is no place for a child."

_Still, I feel guilty just leaving him with you._

"Guilt is a human emotion."

_You forget I'm only a quarter Vulcan. My emotions aren't as intense as yours._

"Tara. It's no big deal. I could tell you and Leo missed the stars. I've seen enough of them to last a lifetime. Now, I do believe we are being rude to our children."

Tara noticed Aeryn's abrupt subject change but decided to ignore it.

_Hey kids!_

"Hello Aunt Tara."

"Mommy!" George reached out with both hands, almost falling off the couch had T'Mira not caught him. George pulled T'Mira closer to the screen. "Mommy."

_Hi sweetie. How's my big boy?_

Aeryn rolled her eyes at such a display of emotion. T'Mira and George talked with Tara for several minutes before Aeryn noticed George yawning and rubbing his drooping eyes. "T'Mira, why don't you lay George down for a nap? Then you and I can tend to your garden."

"Yes, mother."

Once T'Mira was gone, Aeryn allowed herself to relax. She brought the cup of tea she'd been nursing for the past hour to reach her lips. The warm liquid brought along with it a sort of calming sensation. The doctors that had examined her said her exposure to the mineral in the mining colony proved to have some permanent effects on her neural pathways. Her ability to suppress emotion was the most affected. While she wouldn't be turning into a human any time soon, the new emotions were a bit difficult to handle at times, especially so with Leo gone.

_Jim says to thank you for letting Leo off his leash._

"Please, tell Jim it wasn't any trouble. Leo really being up there, even if he wouldn't admit it."

_He's missed the two of you. Talks about you every day. Sometimes I really wonder if it was the right decision to force him to go back._

"Tara. You and I both know his heart is in space. He liked being here with T'Mira and me but there were times, when he thought no one was looking, I'd see him look to the stars again. He's happy, isn't he?"

Tara nodded. _More than you know. How's George been?_

"Good. Tara, why are you whispering?"

_Jim's asleep. It's been a hell of a week. Everyone's exhausted. Can't wait to come home._

"When will you be here?"

_By 1800 at the latest. So eight hours._

That's when Aeryn noticed something was wrong. Her hands were shaking and her vision was starting to dim. The air . . . there was something in the air. A gas, maybe? Whatever it was, Aeryn didn't have much time to think before crashing face first to the floor. The cup made a shattering sound off in the distance. Aeryn tried gasping for air but found more of the gas.

_Aeryn. Aeryn. What's going on?_

"Can't . . . breathe." That's when she recognized the odor. "Nitrous . . .It's nitrous oxide."

She tried pushing herself back up only to lose her strength. The signal faded, leaving echoes of Tara's gasps of terror to linger in Aeryn's mind. Her thoughts went to the children. Except, again, when she tried to push herself up, Aeryn couldn't find the strength. Her ears picked up the sound of heavy footsteps crossing the room. Rough hands lifted her near unconscious body and carried her to a small room, the children's room perhaps. The thought was quickly pushed aside when she didn't sense T'Mira. The hands tossed her in and she landed hard and without any cushion to brace the fall. A familiar snap resounded faintly at the edge of her hearing. It would probably be her wrist, but she couldn't tell for sure, not with the pounding pain in her mind.

"Who are you?" Her voice was raspy and breathless.

She heard and saw nothing. It was her nose that caught the faint smell of something burning.

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"Let me through, damnit." McCoy pounded his fist on the receptionist's desk. The young lad, no more than twenty-three, swallowed and tried to put on his most appeasing face.

"Sir. Your wife is nearing the end of her surgery. You'll have to wait for Doctor Gibson."

"I'm a doctor, kid. I can help them."

"That's against protocol and you know it. Now sit down in the waiting room or I'll have security escort you out of the hospital."

Hard blue eyes met the young green ones with annoyance. He opened his mouth to say something when a hand grasped his shoulder. McCoy turned to find Kirk shaking his head.

"Let them do their job. Come on, Tara's got coffee."

McCoy shook his head and mumbled something about young help being so god damn incompetent. He followed Kirk to a small room with pure white walls and a table with five chairs. Tara was waiting in one of them with a cup of coffee for each of them. She pulled Kirk's jacket closer to her body and wiped away the tears forming in her eyes. That's when Kirk and McCoy noticed the other gentleman in the room.

He stood, saluting to his superior officer. "Lieutenant Charles Archer, Head of Security. I think you should sit down."

Kirk sat next to Tara, placing an arm around her stiff shoulders. Tara tried to keep an even face but the tears fell anyway. McCoy crossed his arms and refused to sit. Archer nodded.

"We almost didn't get to Aeryn in time. Whoever planned this did their homework."

"How so?"

"The fire took away a lot of the evidence. However, we did manage to find several containers of nitrous oxide hidden throughout the house, planted where no one would ever look. They released the gas, which knocked Aeryn out."

Jim raised an eyebrow. "Nitrous oxide shouldn't do that, right?"

McCoy scowled. "The pointy eared hobgoblins can't process the gas. Knocks them out within minutes."

"There's something else you should know. I hate to be the bearer of bad news . . ."

"Dear god man, spit it out already."

The man shifted his weight in the chair. "Aeryn was the only one in the house. There were no other bodies. However, we found this on Aeryn's body." He extracted a plastic bag that contained a slightly charred note. McCoy grabbed the bag and read out loud the chicken scratch.

"You have such lovely children. It's a shame they'll have to die, slowly, painfully. You'll be lucky to get them back in one piece. Don't bother trying to find us. Time is on our side. Give Aeryn our regards. Captain Renolt and Lieutenant Jornst." McCoy lost strength in his legs and the color in his face faded. Kirk ripped the note away from his friend and read it over and over before slamming it down on the table.

"Renolt and Jornst are dead. We saw their execution ourselves."

"They somehow got a hold of trioxide compound that simulates death. It fooled everyone into putting them into the morgue where a couple of bribed doctors just happen to look the other way."

McCoy's eyes darkened. "Who were those doctors?"

"They've been taken care of. We're looking into a lead. Once we know more, we'll keep you informed."

There was a knock at the door. A nurse with blonde hair and serious brown eyes approached with a small smile. McCoy wanted to snap at her. This was no time for smiling.

"What is it?"

"The surgery went well. Aeryn is awake, and she's asking for you."

McCoy's heart sunk. How in the hell was he going to tell Aeryn that T'Mira had been taken. He looked over at Tara who was a complete mess. Kirk was holding her close and whispering words of comfort into her hair. Him and McCoy exchanged a knowing look before McCoy stood and allowed the nurse to lead him to Aeryn's room.

Aeryn unfolded her arms and pinched the bridge of her nose. The pain in her head hadn't dimmed even with the pain relievers pumping through her system. She'd heard Leo had gotten in. She didn't know how to explain this to him. Of course, he'd probably already been told.

The sound of a door opening sent her stomach flip-flopping. Waves of nausea left her at a loss for words for once. Leo's face gave her a renewed sense of hope. That was, until she saw the hurt he was trying to suppress.

"Aeryn." He approached her carefully.

"You know?"

"They told me."

Her head began to spin. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault." He leaned in and placed a small kiss on her forehead. When he tried to pull away, Aeryn pulled him down for a real kiss. She hadn't seen in her husband in nearly half a year. A kiss on the forehead was not sufficient. He smiled against her lips. "How are you feeling?"

"Better. The damage was superficial. Nothing major. I've missed you."

"As have I. I told you me returning to Starfleet was a bad idea."

"You weren't happy. I could sense that."

He slid onto the edge of the bed so Aeryn could lean back against his shoulder. His arms wrapped around her. For a moment they laid there, each at a loss of what to say. Finally McCoy took in a sharp breath. But before he could say anything, Aeryn turned so their gazes were even.

"Where's T'Mira? They won't tell me. Is she alright?"

McCoy's silence sunk Aeryn's heart.

"She's dead?"

"No. Her and George have been taken."

"Oh, God. No! No! You're lying."

"I wish I was, Aeryn." McCoy closed his eyes and held back the tears. "I wish I was."

"Who took them?"

"It's a long story."

"Tell me."

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_**Author's Note: **Oooohhhh!!!! This isn't good!!!!! Don't worry. I've got the next chapter waiting to be posted. Reviews will get it faster._

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_Oh…before I forget. I figure I should reward you readers. After all, without you guys my story would feel very lonely. I was surfing the internet, the only kind of surfing I'll ever do by the way (I'm watching Shark Week at the moment), and I found the most jaw dropping picture EVER!!!! Someone decided to mix Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto to see what their son would look like. All I can say is "DAAAAYYYYMMMM!!!!!!!" Don't believe me? Check it out. Copy and paste the link. Remember to take out the spaces: _

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_http:// towleroad. typepad. com/.a/6a00 d8341c730253ef011570 e40787970b- pi_

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_Sexy huh? Yeah, I know. Anyway, enjoy your gift until I post the next chapter. REVIEWS ARE EPICNESS!!!!_


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